and while I have your attention

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I'm going to Texas.

That's my new adventure, the one I keep forgetting to tell you about.

As you may or may not know, I've left Boston. For the last week or so, I've been back at my parents' house in Indiana. The bakery job is done. Well, for now. It's there if I want to go back to it. 

And I may, who knows. I liked Massachusetts. And I miss my coworkers. Such a fun group of people. 

Quick draw!

But I'm ready for something new again. New job, new people, new view from my window.

Or, as it may appear to you, the wind has changed directions again and off I go with it.

Whatever. This blog is called "Hither and Yon" for a reason.  Perhaps in the future, my biographer will title this chapter of my life story, "The Wandering Years". I'll leave that to his or her discretion.

Anyway, what awaits me in the Lonestar State?

Well, my sister and some very dear friends, for starters. I cannot wait to see them all.

Secondly, I have a place to stay, temporarily.

If I can find work, if I like the area, perhaps there will be a life for me there.

But I could also hate it and be back north before March is even hot off the presses. Hopefully that's not the case.

And that's it, folks. Now you know as much as I know. 

Thursday morning, my dad and I are hopping in the trusty Volvo and heading to Houston. We'll spend the weekend with my sister and then I depart for Austin(ish).

This could be the start of something great. 

Or just a really long and expensive roadtrip vacation.

Whatever it is, I'm open to the possibility.

Now really I must get back to the suitcases.

Of all the things I should be doing

...making bird silhouette wall art with scrapbook paper and Mod Podge is not on the list.

The list looks more like this:

 -finish 2011 taxes

 -pack my suitcase

 -find a job

 -stop using my quarter life crisis as an excuse to dress like a homeless person every day

"Why?" says my conscience (who sounds a lot like my mother, incidentally), "why do you insist on starting these projects when you should be doing other things?"

 Because that's the way the creative muse works.

She strikes at the most inconvenient times.
It's why some people do their best work at the 11th hour.
Or have their greatest ideas in the shower or just before they're falling asleep.
Or how certain stories about boy wizards are born on paper napkins in a bar.

(That's right, I get a little nuts with paper and scissors & suddenly I'm J.K. Rowling.
Nope. Just desperately wishful thinking.)

Also, I had a coupon for the craft store, which is how I ended up with a bunch of empty plastic picture frames in the first place.

Oh, look at the time.
Must get back to my regularly scheduled life procrastination.

Ta-ta, darlings.

A Spot of Inspiration

"Don't bend; don't water it down; don't try to make it logical; don't edit your own soul according to the fashion. Rather, follow your most intense obsessions mercilessly."

Franz Kafka

Delightful illustration by charming artist Dinara Mirtalipova, whose blog can be found here 

Ah, winter

 Last weekend, it looked like this:

Freedom, NY

I knew you'd rear your snowy head soon, winter. It was really nice to see you.

Even though you made it really really hard to take photos outside, it was still a pleasure.

And now you're gone already. I'm not saying I mind 40 degree temps in February. 

Not at all.

But I just want to thank you for stopping by for a quick visit. 

Same time next year?

Alright.

Won't You Be Mine? Yes, thank you, I will

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Happy Valentine's Day, lovers.

I love today and I don't care who knows.

For me, it's not about celebrating love with another person.
In fact, we're working with over two decades of Valentine's Day spent tout seule.
It's about celebrating me and how much I love myself.

So here's how Ellie celebrated V-Day 2012:

I began the day by letting myself sleep in. Then I enjoyed a leisurely breakfast with the sun and the comics page of the newspaper. Afterwards, I put on some snazzy threads and took myself off to the dentist for a cleaning.
It was a treat. No really, I love going to the dentist. It's nice to be reminded every 6 months how beautiful my teeth are.

Seriously, I kind of have a big head about it.

The rest of the day was filled with doing only pleasant things, like hanging out with my brothers and going to the library and wandering around the craft store picking out new frosting tips. Also editing photos from last weekend's engagement session with dear friends and preparing the dough for a little baking project I'm doing this week.

Tomorrow is the day for organizing, cleaning, and other boring responsible things, like taxes.

But Valentine's Day is for me.
And for red and pink everything.
And sweet crafts from my little brother.
And for eating a bit of chocolate my dad got my mom (she shared, guys, I didn't steal)
And for getting myself flowers.
Which, for the record, is not sad because I have awesome tastes in floral arrangements. Also, I buy myself flowers like once a week.

I don't just love me, though. I love you too. So treat yourself to whatever makes you happy. Go to Starbucks and get a Venti whatever. Tell 'em Ellie sent you.
That won't get you a discount or anything. It just felt right to say. 


Also, smile a lot. It looks really nice on you.

Really, it all comes down to what my witty & charming friend Julie said this morning:

Amen.

A Dose of Cuteness

Animals doing cute things on video? Yes.

Seriously, this just makes my day.
It's a bunny who thinks he's a sheepdog. You can't make this stuff up.
Well you can, but it's cuter when it's real life.

For more adorableness, check out the the bouncing little lamb post I shared a year ago.

Happy Friday. :)

Welcome, February

Taking a little break from the photo challenge. I'm probably breaking the rules by pressing pause but I am far too busy this week to take the time necessary to do it right. I'll explain more later but a new adventure is on the horizon for me. And by horizon, I mean next week, so I have a lot to do before then.

In the meantime, the weather is nice and the calendar is on a fresh page so get out there and take the following wise advice: